Aminus Periditus
by LiveLaughLoveTogether13
Summary: When new student Percy Jackson arrives at Aetheria House, Annabeth Chase cannot understand the unwarranted, uncontrollable animosity she feels at the mere sight of him. In a world where the Greek Gods are real and they crave for her blood, Annabeth finds her heart at risk just as much as her life. Rating: M, Annabeth/Percy inspired by Josephine Angelini's Starcrossed.
1. P A R T O N E

_PART ONE_

 _"To die, to sleep -_  
 _To sleep, perchance to dream - ay, there's the rub,_  
 _For in this sleep of death what dreams may come..."_

\- Hamlet, William Shakespeare


	2. I

" _It harrows me with fear and wonder."_

\- Hamlet, William Shakespeare

* * *

 **I**

* * *

Days were passing by far too fast and yet too slow; walls were closing in on me yet I am stranded in vast spaces of endlessness. It's as if the whole world was on a standstill yet I am still moving forward, completely alone. I'm always either overwhelmed or empty. It wasn't a strange or random epiphany either, I feel as if I am living in a constant state of too much and not enough since the beginning of my so-called mediocre, seventeen years of existence.

With a heavy sigh, I slam my locker hard; it's hinges creaking in protest. A couple across the hall jump apart from the sound, to which I rolled my eyes and stalked down the hallway. Few peering eyes burned into the back of my head, yet they all disappeared soon enough, too busy with their own lives surrounded by their friends and new love interests.

It sickens me.

Slim arm wrap around mine, as a flash of ebony obscures my view. Calypso Demetriou's grinning face jumped in front of me, her green eyes dancing as she gazed at me.

Calypso Demetriou, the Grecian Goddess bestowed upon the Aetheria House inhabitants. Her hair fell into waves over her shoulders in chestnut ringlets. Coffee coloured skin ran across the length of her body, and her shocking emerald eyes were the brightest of colour I have seen in the dreary existence of Aetheria House. A transfer student from Greece, Calypso was what you could say, my only closest friend.

"Annabeth Chase," Her thick accent engulfed my hearing, as she pulled me further down the corridor and into the courtyard. "Where have you been?"

At that, I rolled my eyes. "Experiencing an existential crisis and wondering what the hell I am doing with my life in this hellhole,"

Calypso chuckled, her emerald eyes dancing as she sat across from me on one of the school benches. "So the usual," She winked, pulling her lunch bag out.

Sighing heavily, I pulled my golden locks from its position at the top of my head, running my fingers through the unruly curls. "What do you expect when I'm stuck in here for six hours, five days a week?"

"Did you hear about the new kids that are coming next week?" Calypso questioned, her eyes turning into crescents as excitement consumed her.

"No," I collected my half-eaten sandwich in pile, before carefully dumping it in the trash can behind us. "And I don't care."

"Oh come on Annabeth!" She whined, "New students _don't_ come here. It's unheard of,"

I rolled my eyes once again. She wasn't wrong either – Aetheria House was a school cast away in the east side of Long Island, New York, hidden behind an almost constant gloom of mundaneness. It was a fairly new building, however the school had built its own prestigious record of being unequivocally and utterly stereotypical. It also did not help the reasoning for the school, a dumping ground of the rich and unwanted. I was one of the only students who came from a poorer background, but just as unwanted as the entire of the 100 students across the whole school populace. To say it was surprising for new students would be an understatement – it was front-page news.

Thankfully, the bell signalling the end of lunch interrupted Calypso's rant. Sending her a quick wink, I made my way to my classroom, Calypso rushing to her locker to grab her assignment.

Formulating the best route towards my last class without encountering any stereotypes, I stumbled into History class, making my way to the back of the classroom. People evaded me as they came into my warpath; with a large sneer I dropped my book bag to the ground and collapsed onto my desk. Cleo, my only acquaintance in this class was busy talking to one of the classmates at the front of the class, effectively leaving me to my own devices.

Time really did feel as if it was escaping, an hour turned into minutes, minutes turned into seconds. Resting my head against my desk, I closed my eyes briefly.

 _All that could be seen were fires, the smell of smoke thick in the air. A burning sensation filled my lungs; it was becoming harder and harder to breath. I had to keep reminding myself, breath in and out, in and out. Keep breathing. Don't give up. It was becoming harder to breath, harder to think, harder to live._

"Annabeth," A gentle voice shook my dreams away. Mr Brunner raised an eyebrow tapping his watch. "I know that History can be boring, but for you to sleep through my entire class, I think you'll be having to increase your daily intake of coffee, dear,"

Mortified, I looked around the classroom and noticed that indeed the class was empty, as was the corridors. "I'm so sorry Mr Brunner,"

His eyes crinkled as it turned into crescents, "It's alright. I suspect you didn't hear my announcement at the end of lesson- we will be studying Greek Mythology as the next syllabus so you'll be needing to get a new textbook," He scrawled the name of the book onto a neon green post-it, before handing it to me.

Nodding my head quickly, I gathered my things. "Sorry for inconveniencing you, sir," I mumbled, making my way out of the door hastily.

"Annabeth," He called out just as I stepped out of the door.

"Yes sir?"

"Do be careful when walking home, I wouldn't advise staying out past sunset." The crestfallen gaze in his eyes did not escape my notice either, as a chill settled into my bones.

"Will do, sir,"

* * *

I knew that today would be a bad day. Firstly, it was a Monday. Secondly, I slept through my alarm leaving me with exactly thirteen minutes to get to school, a task that usually took half an hour at best without the New York traffic. And lastly, my Aunt Sophia had left to pick up my grandmother from the airport, leaving me to drive to Aetheria House in an embarrassingly old pick-up truck that was my grandfather's in the 80s. I was surprised it was still running.

Living so close to the boarding school meant that I was one of the few who were able to stay at home, well at my Aunt's house, instead of the dorm rooms that Aetheria boasted, Calypso wasn't as lucky.

A gaggle of students surrounded the left of the car park, leaving the right side open. Without much thought, I pulled my battered truck-like beast into the first parking space available, grabbing the new textbook Mr Brunner explicitly asked for. History was first, and being one of my favourite subjects, I was hoping it would put me into a good mood.

"Annabeth!" Calypso called excitedly, linking her arm through mine. Her beaming face was waiting impatiently as I escaped the clutches of my olden monster. "You won't believe it. Those new students, they are to _die for_ ,"

"Whoa, calm down Cal. Breath." I reminded her, a grin escaping my lips, as Calypso's cheeriness seemed to contaminate me. Calypso obeyed my commandments, taking a deep breath before spiralling into chatter that was both too loud and too quick for me to take in.

"Slow down, Demetriou. Let's try that again, and a bit slower this time." Calypso rolled her eyes, dragging me towards the privacy of my locker. The student body seemed to be questionably missing, the corridors practically deserted.

"Where is everyone? Oh no, we're not late are we?" I exclaimed, turning on my heel to run up the stairs to History. Calypso grabbed the strands of my backpack, pulling me to a halt.

"Whoa, calm down Annie." She grinned, using my words against me. "The bell hasn't rung yet, and if you listened to first two times I explained, you would already know the answer."

"Everyone is gathering around the transfers and like I said, they are _to die for._ " Calypso gripped my forearm in an almost unbearably tight grip, a tell-tale sign of her excitement. "They're from Greece, like me. People from _Elláda."_

"Not only that, they're from the coast of Oia, I've always wanted to go there, beautiful town from what I've heard. And filled with beautiful people if the new transfers are anything to go by. They're all _gorgeous_."

I glanced at Calypso and found it hard not to believe, there definitely must be something in the waters in Greece. From what it seems like, they were all inhumanly beautiful.

"How many of them are there?" I glanced around the empty corridor, as Calypso slowed to a more manageable stop next to me. As she walked me to History class Calypso launched into the tale of the new transfer students.

"There're three of them, cousins and a family friend apparently. Two boys and a girl."

"How do you even come across all this information?" I let out a laugh, as the bell above rang, signalling the beginning of the day.

"I have my sources." She winked at me, turning hurriedly to make it to the third floor where she undoubtedly had a horrible Chemistry test. "I'll meet you at lunch. Make sure you save me a seat!"

I nodded my head, grinning as I saw people's gaze towards her as if she were mad.

"Hello Annabeth."

I turned my head towards Cleo, a girl whose history knowledge rivalled my own. Sending a small smile to her, we walked into the classroom as people slowly filed in. "Hi Cleo. What did I miss yesterday?"

She sat next to me, flicking her auburn ponytail over her shoulder. Sending a grin my way, "Oh you mean before or after you decided to have a nap? I talk to someone who isn't you for once and you then go and sleep the entire lesson. Mr Brunner's an angel though, if you were in Mrs Scion's class…" Cleo shivered, trailing off her sentence as we both imagined the wrath of our English teacher.

My cheeks burned a deep red, almost as bright as Cleo's hair. "Let's not talk about that."

"You didn't miss much." Cleo rolled her eyes. "I'm much more willing however to talk about the new transfer students."

I felt an unjustified anger settle in my stomach. "Gods, I swear that's all I've been hearing about. What's so great about them?"

"Wait, have you not seen them?" I shook my head; recounting the horrid morning I had experience. Cleo was an animated audience, gasping and crying in outrage at the right moments.

"Well, when you do finally see them, you will almost cry at their beauty."

"So I've been told." I rolled my eyes, remembering Calypso's remarks from earlier.

Mr Brunner had decided to roll through the doorway at exactly this very moment, his hands resting on the breaks of his wheelchair tightly. I turned away from Cleo and I's idle chatter, and opened my notebook to a fresh clean page.

"Children!" Mr Brunner's tenor voice boomed. Regardless of his disabilities, Mr Brunner commanded respect as soon as he entered a classroom. Our history class was a relatively small classroom. There were ten students who had elected for History, although I did notice there seemed to be more lately.

Mr Brunner had hated school desks being side to side, he was after all anything but mundane. Instead, he encouraged the idea of co-operative learning. As such, the desks were placed in almost a horseshoe fashion, with Mr Brunner usually in the middle, dictating our futures with his historical content.

He grinned at us, before motioning a hand from the door, as if beckoning someone. In fact, it seemed as if he was. "We have a new student."

As he said this, there was a titter within the class. Cleo clamped her hand around my wrist, excitement clear in her eyes. I could just make out the figure of the new student from his silhouette; he seemed to loom over everyone, a height to be contended with.

"This is our new transfer student from Greece, Perseus Jackson."

I glanced up from the pages of my textbook and clashed with the eyes of a devil. The twists of his face were sharp edges that would cause me harm if I looked to long. Dark ebony tumbled from the top of his head, escaping in sea-like waves, framing his face in small, curled ringlets. And his lips. His lips were contorted into the smile of Lucifer before he fell from Heaven.

His eyes. His eyes were blue. Not the ordinary, watered-down blue of the sky, or the colour of a worn-out sweater that would engulf you in familiarity and warmth. No, his eyes were the darkest hour of night- a deep, rich indigo with specks of unexplored stars and galaxies. They were the early morning chills, the dew of light as you awake from your slumber. They were the sea, with all it's waves and tides and storms. His eyes were that kind of blue, the promise of danger- a threat that would destroy you. His were the type of blue that would drown you.

I hated him.

It all happened very suddenly, a simple second between the two of us. It took me a while to comprehend the severity of the feelings that coursed through my body, in which time shock and confusion to flood over as I recognised the feeling, only to be again overwhelmed by the intensity of hatred I felt for this boy. His eyes flashed to mine; as if I had called him to my attention, as if I was the one he was looking for since he walked into the classroom.

My life always was dreary, a mundane tone of brown and greys, no colour, no feeling. I always assumed anger would be red, a vibrant scarlet that would destroy all in its path, like fire. No, this anger was different. This anger was scorching white, a blinding, crude, coarse light that bathed over me. I clenched my fists beneath the table, relinquishing Cleo's grip on my wrist as I gripped the hem of my blouse. My body stiffened, rigid as ice as I harshly turned my gaze away. The immense abhorrence that surged inside of me could not be extinguished. Like the fire that was burning through my veins, the mere sight of this man, no this boy, would destroy me if I did not destroy him first.

I knew I should have stayed in bed.

* * *

 _End of I_

 _Next time:_

 _"I'm feeling better now that you're here."_

 _"Stop with the flattering. Just because your sick doesn't mean I won't still kick your ass at Just Dance."_


	3. II

"I have love in me the likes of which you can scarcely imagine and rage the likes of which you would not believe. If I cannot satisfy one, I will indulge in the other."

-Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

* * *

II

I didn't even remember how I managed to continue the lesson. I felt so angry that tears had started to form in the corner of my eyes. Keeping my head down most of the lesson did not stop Cleo's worried quips as she whispered in my ear, or the eyes of a fallen angel from never straying from my face. I could feel it when he was looking at me.

When the bell rang signalling the end of the class, I was one of the first people out. Choking out a quick goodbye to Cleo, I rushed past people into the hallway, away from Perseus Jackson.

As soon as I had escaped his presence, embarrassment flooded me. Rushing to the bathroom, I knew I had five minutes until Economics but I had to calm myself down.

 _What's wrong with me?_ I thought, looking into the mirror of the bathroom. _There is no logic behind my hatred for him. I've never met him before, I definitely would have remembered._

Releasing a huge sigh, I splashed my face with water, hoping that my mind would clear itself. Maybe I was sick, that could be the only resolution to my problem. Yet, I couldn't stop the embarrassment that engulfed me.

I had no right to feel this unwarranted revulsion; he hadn't done anything to me, I've never met him before in my life. Yet I reacted so strongly there was no denying the intensity of my feelings.

"Oh, sorry."

My head snapped up to the intruding figure, my eyes narrowing on themselves. I could see that the person had shrunk back from my glare, and I felt an almost sorry for the girl.

She must have been the one female transfer. I don't think I had seen anyone quite like her in my years at Aetheria. Her hair fell in uneven, chestnut layers, as if they had been chopped with kitchen shears yet they warped around her shoulders in impeccable waves, as if they all had a purpose. The strands, which on anyone else would have looked tatty and ill fitting, gave the girl character. And her eyes, a doe shape that most would kill for, and I couldn't determine the colour; they seemed to change with every glance towards them.

Her cheeks rushed a vibrant red as I continued to observe her. I couldn't help the warmth that spread through my body, as I dropped my head back to the mirror, embarrassment seeping through me.

 _Well done, Annabeth. First you have an unwarranted animosity to a guy you barely know and now you're staring someone down as soon as they speak to you. Great manners._ I groaned internally, turning the tap in hope that the noise would make things less awkward.

"It's okay." I mumbled, not looking up from the interesting speck of chipped paint at the side of the bathroom mirror. The girl stood awkwardly beside me, reaching for the soap to wash her hands. As it turned out, the soap dispenser on her right was out of order, meaning she had to reach over me for the soap on my left.

I stepped back, allowing her to thoroughly wash her hands. As I wiped my wet hands on my jeans, I gripped my backpack about to walk away.

"I'm Piper, by the way." Her voice was as unique as her appearance. It seemed like honeysuckle, the sound you heard on the radio as you drove on a road trip during spring break. "I just transferred here."

"I guessed that." I almost winced at how snarky I sounded. "I meant, Aetheria doesn't usually get new students. I'm Annabeth." _Could you be anymore socially inept?_ I berated myself.

"Yeah, I probably should realise that." She laughed awkwardly, tugging the strands of her hair. "I just had Calculus, and Mr Jones is a witch in disguise I swear. Is he always so uppity?"

I shrugged, almost grinning at the girl. "I had him last year. Apparently, his wife ran away with a younger, Spanish model to Mexico in the summer. He's been like that ever since."

"I could see why she left." Piper muttered, inciting a chuckle from me. "You don't have him this year then?"

I shook my head, "No, I dropped Calculus after he said, 'Your never going to amount much to anything in my class, Miss Chase'. I take Statistics instead."

"Ouch." Piper groaned. "I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for the impending wa-" her voice stopped short. I took in her wide eyes as her hand came to cover her mouth.

"Wasn't for what?" Impending didn't connate to anything good.

She looked as if she had swallowed something sour, before muttering "Nothing." Grabbing some paper towels, she wiped her hands dry before sending me a half, weak smile. "I should go, my boyfriend's probably having a fit waiting for me."

 _Boyfriend? Gods, is she going out with Percy?_

Immediately, the thought sent my stomach into knots of unease. "Yeah, it was nice meeting you." I whispered, moving out of her way. My stomach didn't ease up at all, in fact, it seemed to get worse after she sent me a small wave.

I gripped the edge of the sink as my breath came out in harsh gaps. It felt like my stomach was on fire. A fire that soon reached my head. My temples seemed to pulse red, hot pain flooded through me. Trembling, I glanced at the mirror, seeing my reflection.

Numbness flooded through me. Three, hooded figures stood behind me in the reflection, their faces gaunt to the bone of their skull. A gasp escaped me as one lifted a bony figure towards me. Closing my eyes, I shook my head in fear, before opening it in shock. The three figures were gone, and in place was the face of a weary girl, her eyes bloodshot and face as pale as a ghost.

Swallowing deeply, I closed my eyes, trying to erase the image of the women. Unable to stand it anymore, I rushed out of the bathroom, making a beeline for the fire exit.

* * *

"Annabeth Chase!" a voice called out from the entrance. "I got a call from school saying you were absent for your last two lessons! What were you thinking playing hooky, young girl?"

I was trembling as pain still flooded my body. My clammy fingers gripped my head as I pulled myself tighter around myself. I just needed the pain to go away. I needed it to stop.

"Aunt Sophia," I managed to mumble out, gasping through the pain as best as I could.

"Annabeth!" I could hear Aunt Sophia rush towards me, just as I fell off my bed. My body felt as if it were convulsing, I was shaking so much.

"Make it stop." I seethed out of my clenched teeth. "Please." Tears began to stream down my eyes. "Make it stop. Please."

I almost sighed in relief when the pain finally stopped as my eyes rolled to the back of my head and darkness was lending it's helping hand.

* * *

Brown-gold eyes were the first things I noticed when I woke up. A damp washcloth lay against my forehead as I struggled up from my bed. Aunt Sophia protested, her hands pushing me further down onto my bed.

"I was so worried, Annabeth." Aunt Sophia softly tugged the end of my blonde curls, her voice thick with concern.

"What happened?" I croaked. My throat was sore, as if sensing this, Aunt Sophia handed me a bottle of water, and I gulped it as if I was a sea-bound man finding freshwater for the first time.

"You collapsed as soon as I found you. You had a really high fever, I picked up Mom, she's making her famous soup for you now."

"Nana's here?" Just the single thought of that frail woman made me feel better.

Aunt Sophia must have read my mind, because she chuckled quietly. Placing the back of her hand against my cheek, she removed the now warm towel. "You're fevers coming done already, so just drink plenty of water while I go get some aspirin. I need to call the school to tell them where you are." I nodded, too tired to protest as I sunk into the comfort of my bed.

Aunt Sophia sighed heavily, running her fingers over the top of my head. Pecking my cheek faintly, she exited the bedroom, leaving me to my thoughts.

I must have regained some sort of normality, although that could only be due to my head not being a beacon of pain. I remembered running out of the bathroom and escaping through a fire exit but after that, I didn't know how I got home. I couldn't remember _anything_. That was enough to scare me.

The bed beneath me vibrated. My body groaned in protest as I lifted myself up into a sitting position as I fisted my fingers beneath my pillow in search for the source of disruption.

My phone blared out as numerous text messages flashed across the screen.

 _Where are you?_

 _Annabeth, please don't leave me at lunch all alone._

 _Where the hell are you?_

 _ANNABETH CHASE, ANSWER YOUR GODDAMN PHONE!_

 _Cleo told me what happened in History class, are you okay?_

Calypso had sent messages at regular intervals that corresponded with the breaks at Aetheria, albeit the last one was most defiantly sent when Calypso should have had Calculus (who unfortunately hadn't been able to switch to the other maths class as she was abysmal at statistics and therefore her only option had to be to continue with Mr Jones). Flashing the phone again, I realised that it was well into the evening, almost being seven o'clock.

Sighing, I rubbed my temples, before sending a quick text to Calypso.

 _I'm sick. I've literally slept as soon as I got back home. According to Aunt S, I fainted as soon as I came home._

She replied in a heartbeat.

 _Oh no, are you going to be okay?_

I rolled my eyes, before dispatching a text to her, the brightness of the phone making my eyes blurry.

 _Yeah, I'm probably exhausted that's all. On the bright side, Nana's come to visit. She's making me food as we speak._

I shouldn't have expected a different answer.

 _I'll be there in fifteen minutes._

* * *

True to her word, fifteen minutes later, Calypso was in sitting by the breakfast bar as I sat opposite Nana.

"Eat up, girl. Your so thin, it's no wonder why you're collapsing." Nana was like an Oreo, hard shell but soft centre, and all sweetness. I grinned up at her, practically inhaling the soup in front of me.

"I'm feeling better now that you're here."

"Stop with the flattering. Just because your sick doesn't mean I won't still kick your ass at Just Dance."

"Mom!" Aunt Sophia blushed, hiding behind her hands. Calypso laughed beside me, whooping as Nana stood up and danced towards Aunt Sophia.

Just the thought of moving made my stomach turn. Maybe I wasn't all that better. "Calypso will destroy you. Your on, old lady."

"Who are you calling old lady?" Nana grinned, sashaying to the living room as Calypso followed her, not before sending a wink my way.

"Gosh, she's so embarrassing!" Aunt Sophia groaned, piling plates away into the dishwasher.

I giggled at the reaction. Nana was the most awe-inspiring woman in the world; nothing would be able to change that. Not even her tendency to mortify Aunt Sophia and myself.

"How are you feeling?"

I smiled softly at her, before replying "Much better. I don't have a headache, but I don't think I'll be able to stomach anything heavy anytime soon."

"Good," She rested her hand against my cheek, her golden brown hair pulled back into a messy braid.

"You know," She moved her hand to my hair, gently running her fingers through the tendrils. "You remind me a lot of Fredrick."

My face went pale, and I could tell Aunt Sophia noticed. "You dad had a brilliant mind, Annabeth, just like you. And I know he loved you very much."

"He wouldn't have abandoned me if he did, Aunt Soph."

"That's not true." Aunt Sophia's voice had hardened. "He loved you so much, he had to protect you. And the only way was to send you to me. It must have been destiny. If you were still with him…" She shuddered at the thought.

Fate would have it, that a week after he had sent me to live with Aunt Sophia, he had been killed in a fatal car accident on the Golden-Gate Bridge. I was five years old when I lost my father.

I realised it was irrational, the way I felt about him. I had hardly known Fredrick Chase before he had shipped me off to Aunt Sophia, my memories of him all but fading. But he was all I had known in my short five years, my mother was a no-show, disappearing before Fredrick had even known she was pregnant, leaving only me in a bundled blanket, hidden inside a woven basket. He had stated terms in a letter to Aunt Sophia, how he couldn't handle having me, how it was too much work. I couldn't help but feel abandoned by him; he had been the only constant figure in my life since the day I was born, albeit a very absent figure.

"Aunt Sophia?" I hesitated before speaking. But logically, I couldn't find the answer. "Have you ever hated someone as soon as you saw them?"

Aunt Sophia grinned, "Of course I do, the mailman when he purposely leaves next door's mail on our doorstep. I don't want to talk to the Matheson's, let alone have to deliver them their mail every week. Hmm, let's see, my boss at the office, he's a right bitch sometimes I swear. Oh, and that clerk at Walmart who kept giving me the stink eye because I took more than one free sample."

"You took like fifteen, Aunt Sophia."

"Hey, they were free."

I chuckled quietly, not speaking for a while. Aunt Sophia nudged me, "Come on, owl eyes, spill."

"Well, there's this new… _guy_."

Aunt Sophia groaned quietly; I swear I heard her mumble 'isn't there always'. She gestured for me to carry on.

"He didn't do anything wrong to me, Mr Brunner introduced him into class and I just _hated him_." I couldn't help the venom from seeping out of my voice. Aunt Sophia seemed surprised at the ferocity of my words.

"It's not like the mild irritation, it is full on anger. I was almost crying when I left the classroom from clenching my fists for so long in class. I don't know what's wrong with me to feel this way; he hasn't done anything to me. I've never met him before in my life, it was almost like it was _instinctual._ " I revealed, sighing as I sifted my fingers into my curls.

I could see Aunt Sophia flinch at the word, "I think you should stay away from him Annabeth. Sometimes, you need to trust your instincts."

"But he hasn't done anything _wrong_. It's irrational. Illogical."

Aunt Sophia chucked. "Some things can't be explained by logic, Annabeth. Maybe it was just you being sick, you said you got sick as soon as you left History. You met him today right? See how it goes tomorrow and maybe you'll find that it was a one-off thing."

As Lady Gaga filled the house and Calypso began squealing as Nana rode ahead of her in Just Dance, Aunt Sophia rolled her eyes, escaping to the living room to keep the two in check. A sense of foreboding filled me. My heart seemed to stutter, as a strangled gasp escaped my lips. I swore I saw the same three, cloaked figures in my kitchen, but with a blink of my eyes, all that I saw the empty kitchen.

* * *

 _I couldn't breath._

 _Where am I?_

 _Every inhalation brought smoke through my lungs. A strangled gasp left my body as searing pain flooded through my left arm._

 _Everywhere I looked, there was fire. Every step I took, I hissed in pain. Looking down, I saw that I was in the nightgown I wore to bed, the edges were tatted with dark soot and I could say the hemline was fraying._

 _Cradling my arm harshly to my body, I could already see the blisters start to form. Thick fumes surrounded me, making me close my eyes tightly to prevent the sharp stabs at the corner of my eyes. Tears burned through my eyelids as a stifled gasp left my lips._

 _I stumbled around, feeling my way through with my eyes shut closed. The walls seemed to be made up of a rough material, stone if I made a guess. The floorboards felt hot, like tiles that had been warmed up by the flame. I knew that if the flames hadn't already burnt my feet, the temperature would have injured me. As it was, my whole body seemed to become numb by the experience._

 _Using my hand to guide my way, the temperature decreased rapidly. My eyes opened as I took a deep breath of fresh air. I was in a cave of some sort, my eyes adjusting to the sudden transport from blinding light to darkness. As my pupils dilated, a rough gasp escaped my lips._

 _Bones. Bones everywhere. With a frightful stammer, my knees collapsed beneath me as I fell to the ground, body shaking._

" _Child of Wisdom." A plethora of whispers surrounded me, their icy voices breaking through me. The bones of the dead seemed to be beaming at me, skulls lined up against each other in a mass grave. I gripped the edge of my nightdress, my hands shaking._

" _What? What are you talking about? Where am I?" I almost winced as my voice broke at the end, not as threatening as I had hoped I sounded._

" _Child of Wisdom. Child of Wisdom, the source of the world's destruction, the ruin of Olympus, the cause of the War of the Gods." Disturbing cackles sounded through the flames. I was finding it harder to breath. From all corners, I felt surrounded, feeling harsh grabs pulling at my arms and legs._

" _Where are you? Come out and fight me instead of hiding in the shadows!" I screamed, swatting at the bony hands that seemed to be coming from everywhere, my throat hoarse as I turned widely around._

 _Darkness seemed to cover me, as more hands gripped my shoulders, hands and waist. A loud scream escaped my body, as I shoved my way past. Fingers grasped my hair, tugging me back with a painful jerk._

" _Don't fucking touch me!" I screamed, twisting on the balls of my feet, and shoving my elbow in what I hoped was my attackers stomach. I heard someone's sharp intake of breath, before I stabbed my barefooted heel into where I assumed the attacker's foot was. Their grasp on my body loosened enough for me to free myself, and I took off running into the opposite direction of my attackers. I could hear footfalls behind me, recognising I was being chased._

 _As I ran, the darkness seemed to light up, only to be illuminated by more flames. I saw it now. Crimson was all I could see. Crimson flames, crimson rocks, crimson blood. A cliff was up ahead, flames licking the sides of it. From below I could see what seemed to be a torrent of oceans and waves, crashing against the Cliffside. Howls of grief and sorrow filled the place, as body after body drowned in the waves, being snapped away by the currents._

 _With a gasp, I realised that there was nowhere else for me to go._

" _CHILD OF WISDOM!"_

 _I could see it up ahead. Those three cloaked figures, their skeleton hands pointing towards the sea with a definite tone in their message._

Do not get caught, child. You must never get caught. _Their voices were like a harmony of different tones that merged together to create a chorus. I had no idea how I knew it was they that spoke, and my gut told me not to trust them. Looking back, I could see the shadowy figure of my attacker coming closer. I closed my eyes, fingers curling into a fist. I made my decision._

 _Without any hesitation, I took a deep breath and jumped._

* * *

I threw the covers of my bed off before running towards the bathroom, heaving up last nights supper into the toilet. I could hear footsteps rushing behind me, and felt weathered hands pull my hair away.

My body gasped for air, as I continued to throw up anything that was in my stomach. My throat ached as I clutched the edge of the sink in a deathly grip.

Nana's voice came through the fog, "Breath, Annabeth. Breath." I followed her soothing voice, until the upheavals slowed to a stop. Another voice joined into the crowded bathroom. "Maybe it's a stomach bug." Aunt Sophia's hands were warm as she gripped my upper arm. My legs felt like jelly, like I would collapse at any moment.

I could still smell the scent of burning flesh. Immediately, my stomach tossed and I turned back towards the sink again.

"I'll call in the school." Nana's comforting hand left my back. "Sophia, you go to work. I'll look after her."

"It's fine, Nana." My fingers clawed at the edge of my dress. "Could you get me some water, please?" I managed to choke out.

I could hear the footfalls of people rushing down the stairs. Gripping the wall to steady my footstep, I pulled myself to the sink, rinsing my mouth as thoroughly as I could. My fingernails were covered in ash.

Ash…

Snapping my eyes up towards the mirror, a strangled gasp escaped me. Blackened grime smothered the sides of my face and my hands were covered in blister-like burns. A strangled noise rose through my throat, as I twisted the tap on hurriedly, dousing my arms in cold water. I washed my face and hands thoroughly, lifting my feet to cover as quickly as I could. There was little I could do about my pyjamas. The pale blue shorts had been burned at the hemline, fraying at the end. I looked around the bathroom and grasped the bathrobe that lay on the hook, tightening it around my body.

"Annabeth…" Nana's voice filtered through behind the door. With a startled gasp, I rested my hand against my chest, feeling the unhealthy beating of my heart.

"Yeah?" I stammered, slipping out of the door and meeting her in the hallway. She handed me the glass, and I gulped the water down, my dry throat feeling like sand had run down it.

"Will you be okay on your own for a bit? Sophia's had to run to open up the shop and I have to pick up your Grandfather. He's come back from that ridiculous fishing convention, but he's staying with us before we head back to San Francisco."

I nodded slowly, the pounding in my head becoming more prominent. "That's okay Nana, I'm just going to go back to sleep."

Nana nodded her head, resting a hand on my cheek. I internally winced as pain shot through me; I could already feel a bruise starting to form there. Oh god, I'm going to look like a panda and I have no explanation as to why except for a creepy ass dream where I may or may have not died.

Fuck, this week could not get any worse.


End file.
